A Blast From the Past
by crazifunkicc
Summary: Dimitri leaves St. Vladimir's and returns to Court three years later to a big suprise
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone! This is a (hopefully) longer and more mature version of my story **_**Old Flame. **_**It has the same basic plotline with a few minor changes. Here's a plot summary: At the end of the fight against the Strigoi in **_**Shadow Kiss**_**, Dimitri escaped the Strigoi and promptly left St. Vladimir's with Tasha as her guardian. Unbeknownst to him, he left more than just Rose behind. He returns with Tasha for a visit three years later to a small surprise. **

** Richelle Mead owns all rights to anything recognized from **_**Vampire Academy**_**. **

I was sitting at my desk writing a report, when the door to my office was opened roughly. I jumped in shock when the door slammed into the wall, whirling to face the threat. Thankfully, there was no threat waiting for me in the doorway. Instead, I was facing my three-year-old daughter, Liliya. She put up a fake fighting stance, making me laugh at her attempt.

"Good job Lily-bug," I praised her, kneeling beside her and opening my arms for a hug. She immediately pounced, launching herself into my arms.

"I missed you Mama," she said to my shoulder. I laughed and squeezed her tighter.

"I missed you too Lily." Rising, I pulled her up with me to perch on my hip. Placing my reports in a file using one hand, I continued to catch up with my daughter after our brief separation. "How was daycare? Did you have fun with Uncle Christian, Ryan, and Bella?" She nodded and began chattering away about how her day went and how much fun she had playing with her cousins. Ryan and Rosabella Ozera-Dragomir were about 6 months younger than my daughter and also her best friends. Despite my protests, Lissa had insisted on naming her daughter after me. After my vehement refusal for her to name her daughter Rose or Rosemarie, I helped her settle on Rosabella instead. I refused a direct namesake to prevent confusion.

"Mama, can we go to Aunt Lissa's for dinner?" Lily asked, drawing my attention back to her. I began to refuse, saying that Lissa probably had plans, but my attempts at refusal were thwarted by Lily's puppy dog look. Unable to resist her big brown eyes and pouty lip, I groaned in defeat.

"I swear, you and that look will be the death of me, Liliya Marie," I told her. With a sigh, I took her to her room and changed her into a pair of dark jeans, a pink long-sleeved shirt, and pink winter boots, placing her dirty daytime clothes into the hamper in her room. She followed me back to my room where I changed from my guardian uniform into black jeans, a 3/4 sleeve aquamarine shirt and black winter boots. I helped Lily into her heavy black coat, pink scarf, and pink gloves before donning my own coat and scarf. Picking her up, I walked through the snow from the guardian's building to the Royal Moroi quarters. We immediately went to Lissa and Christian's apartment, and Lily knocked on the door. A minute later, Lissa opened the door with a frazzled look. Her look of frustration immediately fell to be replaced by one of joy when she saw Lily and I.

"I'm sorry for not asking if we could come Liss. This monster," I gestured to Lily, "used her puppy dog face on me." Lissa laughed and beckoned us inside.

"I don't mind Rose, honestly." Lissa said as she let us into the apartment. "I do have two other guests joining us. Christian invited them for dinner tonight." Her facial expression was off, and I noticed that the bond was blocked. Something told me that Lissa knew I wouldn't like her other dinner guests. I narrowed my eyes at her, telling her I would find out who the guests were. I helped Lily out of her winter clothes and her boots so she could play with Ryan and Bella. Once I removed my own coat, scarf, and boots, I turned to Lissa.

"Who exactly are your other guests for dinner?" I asked her, an underlying threat in my voice. She gulped before squaring her shoulders and facing me with a fearless expression.

"Christian invited Tasha over. She's in town for Christmas. Christian wanted to see her. She's bringing one of her guardians with her, but she didn't specify which one." I immediately put on my guardian mask to hide my feelings of panic. What if Tasha brought Dimitri as her guardian? What would I do if he recognized himself in Lily's hair or eyes? My worries must have shown on my face because Lissa hugged me. "I won't let him get to you Rose," she promised. "I'll help you." I nodded, relieved that I had her with me. Just then, Christian entered the room, an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm sorry Rose. I didn't think that Lily might want to come over…I can call Aunt Tasha and tell her something came up…" His sincere apology caused me to shake my head at him.

"No, I won't let my feelings get in the way of your family. I'll survive dinner." I had never been more thankful that Lissa and Christian knew the identity of Lily's father than at that moment.

I walked into the living room and spotted Lily and my godchildren playing what appeared to be house. It seemed that Lily had elected herself the role of "Mommy" and appointed Ryan "Daddy" and Bella "Baby". When the other two complained about the arrangement, Lily defended her decisions by stating that she was the oldest, so she could make the rules. I chuckled at her bossy antics and stood to the side, watching the children play.

By the time that the three kids were tiring of their game, the doorbell rang. I tensed slightly and sat on the couch as Christian answered the door. I heard sounds of greeting from the foyer. I tensed further, and Lily finally noticed my discomfort. She crawled into my lap and wrapped her arms around me, offering me comfort. I smiled and rubbed her back, letting her know I would be okay. Despite my assurances that I was okay, she stayed on my lap. Christian and Lissa reentered the living room, this time followed by Tasha and, to my chagrin, Dimitri.

"Rose!" Tasha said, smiling nicely at me. "It's been so long since I've seen you! How have you been?" I smiled a forced, polite smile back at her.

"I've been well Tasha. How about you?" I asked, rising with Lily on my hip. I freed my right arm so I could shake her hand in greeting, not wanting to actually hug her. She smiled and shook my hand, and I noticed that her handshake was weak.

"I'm good, thanks for asking." She replied. Once we got past the formalities, Tasha zeroed in on Lily in my arms. "Who is this cutie Rose?" Tasha asked.

"My name is Liliya, Lady Ozera," Lily answered, looking at Tasha. Tasha smiled at her.

"So polite. It's nice to meet you Liliya."

"Please call me Lily Lady Ozera. Everyone does, unless I'm in trouble." Tasha chuckled and turned to me.

"Whose is she Rose? I must compliment them for teaching her such impeccable manners." I stood to my full height and looked Tasha straight in the face.

"She's mine." Tasha and Dimitri looked shocked at this.

"If you don't mind my asking, who is her father?" Tasha asked diplomatically. I immediately turned away, shielding Lily with my body.

"That is none of your concern Tasha." Lissa looked at me.

"Rose? Are you okay?" I shook my head at her.

"We're going to go Lissa. I'm sorry for ruining your night, but I have reports to write." I set Lily on the floor and tried to grab her hand, walking toward the foyer and our coats. She ripped her hand out of mine and ran to Lissa, hugging her legs.

"Liliya, you have three seconds to get over here before I come get you myself." I threatened, turning to face my daughter.

"No! I want to stay here with Aunt Lissa! You said we could come to dinner and we haven't had dinner yet!" My face darkened and I stepped closer to her.

"One,"

"Mama, you promised me! I'm staying here!" Her voice rose in volume, and I rose my eyebrow questioningly, trying to keep my temper in check.

"Two,"

"No! I won't go!" Here she employed some choice Russian curse words that had me reaching to grab her and the adults' eyebrows to rise. I darted forward and jerked her arm, forcibly pulling her off of Lissa.

I yanked her closer to me and hissed angrily, "Who taught you those words?" I shook her arm a bit for emphasis. She winced and Lissa looked at me.

"Rose, you're hurting her." At Lissa's words, I relaxed my grip slightly.

"Go get your coat Liliya, we're leaving." I let go of her arm and she scurried out of the room and to the coat rack in the foyer. Shooting one last apologetic glance at everyone in the room, I followed Lily out of the room and into the foyer. I put on my winter clothes and left the apartment with Lily in tow. When I went to bed that night, the image of Dimitri's shocked face when I'd manhandled my daughter wouldn't leave my thoughts.

**How was that? Please let me know in a review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much for your review, story alerts, and favorites! I love this story and appreciate every bit of feedback I get. **

** Anything you recognize from VA belongs to Richelle Mead.**

The next morning I woke with a massive headache and a heavy heart. I can't believe I lost my temper with Lily. She must hate me now. With a lead weight in my chest, I got up and went to Lily's room. She was sleeping peacefully, her little mouth open in silent snores. I smiled softly and sat on the edge of her bed.

"Lily," I called softly, nudging her. "Wake up baby." After a few tries of this, her brown eyes finally fluttered open and focused on my face. After giving her a few minutes to become coherent, I placed my hands gingerly on her back, easing her into a sitting position. She rubbed her little fists in her eyes, dispelling sleep. Her dark chocolate curls were wildly framing her face.

"Mama?' she asked, blinking at me. I nodded and offered a small, sad smile.

"It's me baby. I'm so sorry for yesterday, can you forgive me?" I detected the pleading note in my voice and hoped that she heard it too; I truly needed her assurance that she didn't hate me.

"I forgive you Mama." Breathing a huge sigh of relief, I hoisted her up and got her ready before carrying her out of the room, her head on my shoulder. "Where are we going?"

"I thought you might want some of Aunt Lissa's famous Double-Choco Chip Pancakes." She squealed excitedly at my words. I smiled and we walked across the courtyard and into Lissa's apartment. She was in the kitchen, chatting to a Moroi woman of about 25 with brown-bronze hair and ice blue eyes. A woman in the usual guardian black and white stood in the first woman's shadow.

"Auntie Lissa!" Lily cried, wiggling out of my arms and racing to hug Lissa. Lissa smiled and hugged her tightly.

"Hey Lissa," I greeted, stealing an apple from the fruit bowl and sitting at the kitchen island to eat it. "Would you mind taking Lily to daycare this morning? I have a meeting early and Hans wants me to show the newbies around." I snorted, thinking of the poor guardians who would be under my jurisdiction today. Lissa laughed.

"Bless their souls. They'll deserve a medal if they last the day with you." I shot her a 'You Betcha!' look and trained my gaze on the Moroi standing off to the side now.

"Who's this?" The woman looked at me and extended her hand for a handshake.

"Chloe Zeklos," She introduced herself before gesturing to the guardian behind her. "My guardian is Cassie Romanova." I nodded politely at Cassie and she returned the favor.

"Lady Zeklos, shouldn't you have two guardians?" I asked, noticing the absence of her far guard. She offered me a small, sad smile.

"My second guardian Guinevere, Gwen really, was killed in a Strigoi attack a few weeks ago. That's why I'm at Court. I am allowed one more guardian to pick from the staff here at Court." I gave her a sympathetic look.

"My condolences, to both of you. I know what it's like to lose a good colleague," I said, thinking of my friend Mason. Recognizing the pain on my face, Chloe offered me an empathetic smile.

"Please call me Chloe, Guardian Hathaway."

"Then I insist you call me Rose." She smiled at that. Just then, Christian entered the room with Bella.

"Hathaway," he greeted with a nod, handing me Bella.

"Sparky," I replied, nodding back and holding Bella on my lap. After our breakfast, I was getting ready to go when Tasha entered the apartment, followed by Dimitri and Adrian. Adrian walked over to me and kissed my forehead.

"Hey Little Dhampir," he greeted, slouching onto the stool next to me. Lily heard his voice and whipped her head around, averting her attention from her pancake batter to Adrian.

"Uncle Adrian!" she squealed. Without warning, she jumped off her stool and ran to him, suctioning to his legs. He laughed and picked her up, tossing her into the air before catching her deftly. She giggled and began chattering to him in a combination of Russian, Romanian, and English. Those in the room that hadn't known her since infancy looked shocked at her lingual skills. Tasha turned to me.

"Rose, your daughter is very intelligent." I smiled and thanked her graciously. Chloe's eyebrows shot into her hairline at 'daughter'.

"Rose, I didn't know this beautiful girl as yours," she said, glancing at Lily. I looked at Lily expectantly.

"What do you say, Lily?" she turned her face to Chloe.

"Thank you Lady Zeklos," she responded, a small blush on her cheeks. I noticed Dimitri become more aware at the mention of her title.

"May I ask how closely you and Jesse Zeklos are related, lady Zeklos?" He asked politely.

"He's my first cousin, Guardian…?" she trailed off, obviously asking his identity.

"Guardian Belikov," he offered, and she smiled reminiscently.

"Dimitri Belikov?" she asked. He affirmed her suspicions with a nod. "You were Ivan's guardian!" she said, excitement in her voice. He immediately closed in on himself at the mention of his former charge's name.

"Yes," he affirmed, clearly confused at her apparent excitement.

"He was my older brother." She said. They went off into the living room to talk about the late Ivan Zeklos. I noticed Adrian eyeing Chloe all the way out of the room. I gave him a light punch in the shoulder once all the kids had vacated the kitchen.

"Maybe you can escort the lovely Lady Zeklos on a tour of Court," I suggested. He paled before flushing pink. I laughed at his obvious discomfort. "Hey, while you're stressing about that, can you take Lily to daycare this morning? I have stuff to do and I think Lissa has some stupid meeting with Queen B-" I immediately cut myself off, remembering the kids in the house and the fact that the queen is Adrian's great-aunt. He just laughed off my mistake and said that he'd take her for me.

Just then, the door opened and a redheaded pixie with vividly violet eyes opened the door and poked her head in. "Rose? We have to be at the east gate in 10 minutes." My partner and Lissa's other guardian, Roxana Lupei, informed me in her no-nonsense tone. I rolled my eyes at her.

"Yes Mother," I mocked. "It's funny, I'm the one with a kid and I'm not half as serious as you."

"Whatever Hathaway," she said, rolling her eyes and making a 'hurry up!' motion. "We have to go; newbies, remember?" I grinned.

"Bring it on. They won't know what hit them when we finish with them."

**How was that? I appreciate any and all reviews telling me what you think. By the way, my life is going to be picking back up soon, so updating might be more sporadic in the coming weeks. Consider yourselves warned. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi everyone! I'm so happy for all the reviews and story favorites/alerts! Here's chapter 3!**

** Anything you recognize belongs to Richelle Mead. **

Roxy and I walked across the Court in the early December chill, tugging our scarves and coats tighter around ourselves. We reached the group of young guardians, barely out of school. I smirked at their youth and inexperience. With Roxy on my right flank, I faced the children.

"Listen up newbies," I addressed them in a louder-than-necessary voice to gain their attention and assert my authority. "You have been assigned here because your teachers thought you were the best." As my speech continued, I moved closer to them, trying for an intimidation factor. "Now, you are going to prove to us that you are worth of their confidence." At this point, some of them were pale, worry showing on their faces. "Working in the real world is nothing, and I mean _nothing_, like school or even field training. Take it from someone who knows." When I decided they'd been scared enough, I decided to introduce Roxy and myself. "As some of you may already know, I am Guardian Rose Hathaway, not to be confused with Janine Hathaway. My partner is Roxana Lupei. Does anyone know who our charge is?" Looking over the group of tentatively raised hands, I spotted one girl with dark wavy hair with her hand straight up in the air with the utmost confidence. "You," I said, pointing at her. "Novice…?"

"Ivanova, Guardian Hathaway. My name is Viktoria Ivanova. However, I was under the impression that my title is 'Guardian'. Please correct me if I'm wrong." I narrowed my eyes at the brash girl.

"Well, _Novice_ Ivanova, apparently your instructors didn't tell you that you go through schooling here too. Consider it 'graduate school'. You all will be paired with experienced guardians and will do an extended field training, sometimes entering the world outside the wards with your temporary charges." The newbies looked shocked at this. "Now, Miss Ivanova, do you have an answer to my question?"

"Yes Guardian Hathaway. You and Guardian Lupei are Princess Vasilisa Dragomir's guardians." I allowed her a brief congratulatory nod before addressing the crowd again.

"Guardian Lupei will tell you your partner and temporary charge. Please line up in an orderly, single-file line in front of her for your assignment. Except for you, Miss Ivanova. Once you have received your assignment, please wait off to the side so we can take you to the gym to meet your partner." Once all the novices were lined up in front of Roxy, I pulled Viktoria aside.

"That took some guts, Ivanova." She blushed at my praise but quickly replaced her guardian mask. "I personally have confidence in you. I'm switching your assignment. You have potential, so I'm skipping you to the big leagues. The best guardian I know is Russian you know." I smiled briefly at the thought. Her eyes lit up, despite the mask she was carefully trying to maintain.

"Really?" I nodded.

"Yes, he was my mentor. Now it's time for your assignment. I will be your partner, and we will be guarding Princess Dragomir." I watched as her eyes grew to saucers at the thought of being the last Dragomir's guard.

"What about Guardian Lupei? Who will she guard?" I chucked amusedly. This seemed to shock Viktoria more; she wasn't expecting me to be nice.

"She has a new Moroi to guard while we're training. Being my partner also comes with more responsibilities than just guarding Lissa, since we're just going to be here for the most part." Viktoria looked eager for her 'extra duties'.

"Are you good with kids?" She smiled and nodded, her waves bouncing.

"Yes, my niece is almost four now. Her _Tetka_ Viktoria is her favorite babysitter." She smiled nostalgically at the thought of her niece.

"Good. Your extra job includes watching my daughter, Lily." To say she was surprised would have been an understatement. She quickly recovered, however, and asked more questions.

"Can I meet her?" I smiled, happy at her enthusiasm.

"Yeah, Let me make sure the others get paired up okay, then we'll go get her." I looked over and noticed that Roxy had given out the assignments. We walked over to the Court's gym and entered it. Standing by one of the sparring mats was a group of guardians. I took Roxy's clipboard and started shouting out the pairings. After about thirteen pairs had been established, I looked at my list and stopped in my tracks.

"Young," I called. A girl stepped from the crowd of novices. "Belikov," Dimitri stepped from the group of guardians and led the girl away, most likely to brief her. Deciding that Roxy could handle the rest of the newbies, I took Viktoria's arm and led her out of the gym and toward the daycare. When we reached the daycare, I saw Lily waiting at the gate for me. When she saw me, her whole face lit up, and she began to climb the fence. I laughed and scooped her up, hugging her to me.

"Hi Lily-bug! Did you miss me?" I asked, settling her on my hip. She nodded, and began chattering in a combination of English, Romanian, and Russian. I laughed and put my free hand gently over her mouth. "I only speak English, love, remember?" She put her tiny hands over her mouth.

"Sorry Mama. I forgot. Guess what?" Her eyes lit up.

"What baby?" She started bouncing a bit.

"Aunty Lissa said we could go to see Aunty Mia today!" I smiled and twirled her around.

"Well then, I guess we'll go to the café then." She squealed happily and threw her arms around my neck. "Viktoria, do you want to come?" I asked, turning to her.

"Sure Guardian Hathaway," she responded, looking at Lily and smiling.

"Please, call me Rose. By the way, this is my daughter Liliya." Viktoria smiled at her.

"Hi Lily. I'm Vikki. I'm going to be working with your mom for a few weeks." Detecting the Russian accent laced in her words, Lily got excited and wiggled out of my arms. She hugged Vikki's legs and began chattering away in Russian. Vikki laughed and responded to her, taking it all in stride. I was impressed by her apparent lack of surprise at Lily's lingual skills. She hoisted Lily up and followed me to Mia's father's café.

"One black coffee please. And a hot chocolate for the little lady here." I smiled. Maybe this 'Vikki' kid wouldn't be so bad after all.

**How was that? Please drop me a review to let me know! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Just to let everyone know, Rose knows about her dad because Janine told her when she turned 18. Lissa, Christian, and Adrian are the only ones who know who Lily's father is. Rose can have kids with dhampirs and moroi because she's shadow-kissed. I hope that clears stuff up for you! For all intents and purposes of this story, Russian dolls are porcelain dolls that are rare and cost a lot of money (in the U.S.). Also, "Dima" is the true Russian diminutive of Dimitri, so I use that in this story.**

** All recognizable things belong to Richelle Mead.**

Viktoria paid for her coffee and Lily's hot chocolate before sitting at the table I had commandeered. As soon as she set Lily's hot chocolate on the table, I was reaching into my wallet to pay for the drink. Vikki, however, shook her head at me.

"My treat." I smiled gratefully at her and pulled out my phone and loading my PDA. Glancing at the calendar, I noticed that Lissa has three meetings later that, unfortunately, require my presence. I groaned out loud, causing both Vikki and Lily to look at me.

"I have meetings this afternoon. Boring Royal ones." Vikki groaned too once she realized that she'd be joining me. Lily looked at me with a disappointed face.

"All afternoon? Does that mean you won't be home till late?" Her pout was making me feel horribly guilty.

"I'm so sorry baby, but Aunt Lissa needs me there. Maybe I'll call Uncle Adrian and have him come get you, does that sound okay?" At the thought of spending an afternoon with her Uncle Adrian, Lilly was bouncing in her seat. She nodded sporadically.

"Yay! Mommy, can we play with my dolls?" she asked, the picture of childlike innocence. I immediately gave a horrified look.

"Absolutely not!" I exclaimed. "Do you have any idea how hard it was to get those Russian dolls for you?" She shook her head. "Even Adrian's mommy and Aunt Tatiana had trouble fining those dolls." Lily's eyes took on a saucer-like quality.

"Even Adrian's auntie couldn't get them?" Vikki looked at us in shock.

"Really? I've gotten a porcelain doll for every birthday." I stared at her with my jaw practically on the floor.

"How the heck did you do that? I have to save for _months_ before I can get one." She shrugged nonchalantly.

"My mom bought them for me. When we got older, my sisters or even my brother would buy them. I got one this year actually. I think my brother bought it."

"How many brothers and sisters do you have?" Lily asked, wide-eyed at the thought of siblings besides a twin.

"The oldest is Karolina. Then Sonya and Dima."

"Wow! Is Dima your brother?" Vikki nodded.

"Dima is his nickname." Lily looked at Viktoria in awe and then turned a pleading look on me.

"Wow, _two_ sisters and a _brother_," I saw her pleading look and stopped her in her tracks.

"Oh, no. You can't have any siblings just yet. You're enough for me. Vikki has more siblings because her mommy was braver than me." Vikki laughed at that. Lily turned her big brown eyes on Vikki.

"Can you tell me what your family is like, Miss Ivanova?" Lily asked respectfully. As opposed to other adults who were shocked by Lily's manners, Vikki seemed unconcerned.

"Firstly, call me _Tetka_. My family is…interesting to say the least. I used to always train with my sisters and brother. It was really fun. Sometimes even Mama would help." As Viktoria told Lily some more anecdotes about her family, I noticed that it was time for us to go.

"Lily, we have to go now, ok? I'll take you to Uncle Adrian's room and come get you later." She nodded. The three of us went off to Adrian's room. I knocked on the door. He opened it and gestured us in.

"Adrian, Lissa has some royal stuff to do today and I have to be there with my trainee. Can you watch Lily for the afternoon?" He nodded. We chatted for a bit longer until a feminine voice called from farther back in the apartment.

"Adrian?" The woman stepped into view and I saw it was Chloe Zeklos. I rose my eyebrow at Adrian, who blushed.

"Just a minute Chloe. I'm getting my babysitting debriefing."

"Okay, you know what to do Adrian. No PDA you two," I added, pointing between Chloe and Adrian. They both nodded. I kneeled down to Lily's level and gave her a hug. "Behave for Adrian and Chloe. I'll come get you in a few hours."

"I love you Mama." She said, hugging me.

"Love you baby," I said, kissing her cheek. With that, Viktoria and I were off to the meetings.

**Hi guys! Ok, I'm busy during the week now, so I won't be able to updte except for weekends. I might update during the week if I have time, but it's doubtful. Thanks for all the reviews! **


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm back! I actually had this chapter almost done on Wednesday, but I had to add some stuff to it. My friend June read chapters 1-4 and promptly turned to me asking, "What? That's it?" so I decided to update for her and the rest of you.**

** Richelle Mead owns all rights to VA. NO copyright infringement intended. **

I glanced at my watch and cursed. We were going to be late. "Hurry up," I muttered to Viktoria before lightly jogging down the hallway. She kept up easily. We reached the doors to the council's meeting room a minute before the meeting was scheduled to start. I skidded into the room and over to Lissa with Viktoria on my heels. She raised an eyebrow at me as I slid into my seat.

"What held you up this time?" she asked discreetly, trying to hide our communications.

"Lily," I whispered. She nodded in understanding before sending Viktoria a curious look. I shook my head. "Later," I said.

After the very long and boring meetings, Lissa, Vikki, and I left the meeting room and headed toward the Ivaskov wing and Adrian's suite. On the way, Lissa finally asked me the question that had been on her mind since we got to the meeting.

"Who's this Rose? And where's Roxy?" she asked, looking at Viktoria.

"We're doing novice training. This is Guardian Ivanova. Viktoria, this is Princess Dragomir." I introduced. They smiled at each other and we continued on to Adrian's room to pick up my princess. I knocked on the door when we got there. Lily answered the door.

"Lily, what did I tell you about answering the- oh, hi, Rose," Adrian said, skidding into the room after Lily. I giggled a bit and picked up Lily before kissing his cheek.

"Hey, Adrian." I looked around and noticed a duffle bag on the floor with a suspiciously pink t-shirt hanging out of it. I raised my eyebrow at him and he blushed a bit. "Where's Lady Zeklos?" He mumbled something. I cupped my ear. "Sorry? I didn't catch that," I taunted. By this point, both Lissa and Viktoria were snickering and Adrian was blushing harder. Surprisingly, Lily answered.

"Uncle Adrian's girlfriend went to get dinner," she said, proud that she remembered the details. I smirked at Adrian.

"Since when?"

"Since I took her on that tour of Court." My jaw dropped.

"That wasn't even a day ago. Wow, you move fast," I chuckled, and he looked mortified. Lissa shot me a disapproving look.

"Rose!" she hissed. "Be nice!" I rolled my eyes at her.

"Just be committed before you do anything stupid, Ivashkov." He turned so red I was afraid he might be choking. Lily's eyes widened.

"Mama, you just said the S-word!" Lily scolded me with wide eyes. I laughed a bit.

"I'm sorry Bug. From what I heard, someone said worse around you." She nodded.

"Uncle Chrissie and Uncle Adrian were watching soccer and Uncle Adrian said those bad things when his team lost." I nodded slowly and handed her off to Lissa and Viktoria. Lissa shot me a nervous look as I advanced on Adrian with a clenched fist. He had the smarts to cower like a little girl.

"How dare you teach my baby girl those words," I snarled, stalking closer. He held up his hands in the universal tone of surrender while backing up slowly.

"Rose, I didn't know _Printsessa*_ had come in," he said, trying to plead with me. I finally snapped and launched myself at him with a raised fist. Suddenly, a potted plant flew across the room and hit me in the side, causing me to slam into the ground. Lily and Lissa both screamed in horror at me being thrown to the ground like a rag doll. I looked up, trying to find where the plant had come from. I spotted Chloe standing in the doorway. A pizza box was dropped at her feet and her hands were glowing slightly green with fading magic. Her breathing was the laborious pant of a seriously mad woman.

"Don't hit him," she growled menacingly, hurrying to Adrian's side. I nodded in understanding, much to the surprise of everyone in the room. Lissa, Adrian, and even Viktoria were giving me incredulous looks.

"I kind of deserved the flying fern," I said before settling my gaze on Adrian. "She's a keeper, Ivashkov. I approve of any woman that's stupid enough to throw something at me." This time, both Moroi's cheeks were pink. I stood up and brushed off my clothes with satisfaction. "Lils, go get your bag. We're going to train." Her eyes lit up like they did on Christmas morning. I almost never took her to the gym for fear of her getting hurt, so she was quite understandably excited.

"Wait Mama," she said before we could leave. Deciding to humor her, I stopped at the doorway and faced her. She walked up to Chloe and gave her a roundhouse kick to the knees. Chloe fell to her knees and thus Lily's height, giving Lily the perfect opportunity to land a right hook on the moroi's jaw. She stumbled back in surprise, not expecting that kind of force from a three-year-old. I was looking at Lily in shock; How the heck did she learn how to do that?

"What was that for?" Chloe exclaimed with a hand on her jaw.

"Don't mess with my mama or you answer to me," Lily threatened with a dark look before skipping over to me. "We can go now Mama," she said with her angelic look, tugging on the strap of my gym bag. I shrugged and grabbed her hand, leading her away to the gym.

***Printsessa- Russian for "princess". Used by Adrian as a term of endearment referring to Lily. He also calls her "my princess"—moya printsessa**

**I hope you enjoyed this! I appreciate any and all reviews. Let's see if we can have between 50 and 55 reviews by my next update!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Wow guys! I got about ten more reviews than I asked for! Thanks so much!**

**As always, anything you recognize is Richelle Mead's. **

After leaving Adrian's room, I took Lily to the gym and, consequently, the women's locker room. I got changed into workout clothes and changed Lily as well. I wore a black sports bra, workout pants, and running shoes. Lily wore a white tank top, workout pants, and running shoes. I picked her up and walked out to track. I set her down on the track and kneeled in front of her.

"Lily, I'm going to run. You don't have to run. If you do, stop as soon as you get tired, ok?" she nodded, and we took of around the track at a light jog.

When Lily made it through 2 laps, I decided she had had enough. We went into the gym and to the punching bags. She watched while I beat up the poor, defenseless bag. After a while, I came out of my haze and heard her chattering to someone in Russian. I whirled around and saw that she was talking to a tall man. I didn't realize his identity until he answered her with enthusiasm. I froze. She was talking to Dimitri. I began to panic.

"Lily!" I called across the gym. She froze, thinking I was in trouble. She ran across the gym to me.

"What is it Mama? Where's the trouble?" She scanned the area carefully. I let out a half-strangled laugh and hoisted her up to my hip. I shook my head at her.

"Nothing Bug," I assured her. She visibly relaxed in my arms. "I didn't mean to scare you honey." She immediately accepted my apology and began to chatter on about something unimportant. When she began switching into Russian and Romanian, I reached over and covered her mouth.

"Lily, I only speak English, remember?" She nodded.

"Maybe Uncle Adrian and _Tetka_ Vikki can teach you Russian and Romanian!" Lily proposed. I laughed.

"I don't know Bug. I don't know if I can do it. Uncle Adrian probably doesn't have time to teach me."

"I might be able to help," said a voice from behind us. I whipped around to see Dimitri. Lily smiled at him before turning in my arms to look at me.

"Yeah Mama! Maybe Guardian Belikov can help you! I'm sure he won't mind."

"Well, I have no guarantees that he won't leave me." I spoke the words to Lily, but they were directed to Dimitri. I knew he got the message when I saw him flinch. I set Lily on the floor. "Call Uncle Adrian for me please," I asked her as I handed her my cell phone. She snatched it eagerly from my hand and began to dial the number that she had long since memorized. He picked up the phone fairly quickly because Lily immediately began chattering to him in Romanian. Now that she was occupied, I turned to Dimitri.

"Stay away from my daughter Guardian Belikov," I threatened. He shot me an apologetic and pleading look.

"Please, Roza, I thought I was doing what was best for you," I shook my head at him.

"No, my name is Rose. You lost the right to call me 'Roza' the day you left me. I don't want to hear your excuses. Stay away from my daughter and stay away from me." With that, I picked up Lily, who was still chattering on the phone to Adrian. I walked out of the gym and left him behind once and for all.

Two weeks later, I was living a relatively normal and Dimitri-free life. Adrian had invited us to a small dinner party at his apartment. In honor of his party, Lissa was taking Lily and me shopping, along with Bella and Viktoria.

We arrived at the Court's dress shop. Lissa immediately called over an attendant. The frazzled-looking woman whose nametag read 'Mya' scurried over to us.

"May I help you Princess Dragomir?" she asked politely. Lissa nodded and smiled at the woman.

"Yes, I need dinner party dresses for myself, my guardians, my daughter, and my niece." The woman nodded decisively to herself.

"Of course Princess. With whom would you like to start?"

"If you don't mind, my daughter and niece." The woman agreed and led us over to the girls dress section. We all browsed through the racks. Viktoria called over to us.

"This is perfect for Rosabella," she said with excitement, holding up a little dress. It was a beautiful teal dress that would reach just below Bella's knees. It was a tank top dress with an empire waist. The color matched her pale Moroi skin and platinum blonde hair perfectly. I nodded in approval. Lissa agreed, and we handed it to the saleswoman. We would all pick out our dresses and then try them on to check for any alterations that needed to be made.

"Rose! Look at this!" Lissa called from a few racks away. I walked over to her. She was holding a ballerina pink dress with an empire waist and a small scrap of fabric clipped to the front with the excess fabric hanging down the front of the dress. It would fall mid-calf on Lily. I nodded vigorously at her, indicating that I loved it. She handed it off to Mya before dragging our group to the petites section. I noticed the perfect dress for Lissa first.

"Lissa! This is perfect for you!" I exclaimed. I held up a knee-length black dress. It had what appeared to be real diamonds sewn into it from about mid-thigh down and on the bust area. It had a white ribbon just under the bust that was tied in a tight bow. It would hug every curve of the wearer's body, only to fan out just under the hips. She squealed in delight and grabbed it from my arms, handing it to Mya. Lissa grabbed Viktoria and I before leading us to the regular section. Viktoria immediately spotted the perfect dress for her.

"What do you think?" she asked, holding it up. It was made of a dark grey silk material. It was held up with two straps that were an inch thick. It hugged every curve like a glove before fanning out sharply at the knees and hitting the floor. I gave Viktoria my approval almost immediately on seeing the dress. Viktoria handed the dress to the now burdened-looking saleswoman before we began the epic quest for my dress. We searched for several hours before I heard Bella and Lily call for me.

"Mama! Look at this!"

"Auntie Rose, look!" I walked over to them, and my jaw almost dropped through the floor when I saw the dress that Lily and Bella were both tugging on. For one thing, it was red, my best color. It was made of the finest silk I had ever seen. It had a halter neck, and the chest hugged me perfectly. There was no way a Moroi girl could pull this dress off. The torso area was very snug; it felt like a corset. It was covered in what appeared to be small carat real diamonds. It flowed from the waist down to the floor, but still accented every curve. I nodded decisively and handed it to Mya.

After we had all tried on our dresses and deemed them perfect, Mya lead us to the checkout counter. Just as I was reaching for my debit card, Lissa immediately handed over her shiny credit card.

"No Rose. I want to give this to you." I shook my head, but agreed reluctantly. I just hope this party is worth that hefty credit card bill.

**I enjoyed writing this. Can we try for 75 reviews please?**


	7. Chapter 7

**Wow, I finished this! I know it might be short, but it's three days early! I appreciate all reviews, story alerts, and favorites. It makes me happy that you guys like this.**

**Disclaimer: All recognizable things belong to Richelle Mead.**

A month later, it was finally the night of the party. I slipped on my dress along with some matching red satin heels, courtesy of Lissa. I twisted my hair into a simple up do before helping Lily into her dress and flats. I did her hair in a French twist, pinning it securely to her head. After checking my black leather purse for the necessities, I took Lily's hand and lead her to the Ivashkov wing. I knocked on the door once we arrived.

"Rose!" Chloe exclaimed as she opened the door. She was wearing a strapless white dress that reached just below her knees. It had a black ribbon under the bust line that tied in the back. She was wearing white, strapped sandals that had a heel of less than two inches.

"Hi Chloe," I greeted as I walked in to the house. I took off my coat and Lily's, hanging them on the coat rack. Walking into the dining room, I saw Adrian, Christian, Lissa, Ryan, Rosabella, Viktoria and Cassie sitting there waiting for us. We sat down and started dinner. At the end of dinner, Adrian stood up, taking Chloe's left hand in his right to pull her out of her seat. Lissa's and my eyes zeroed in on Chloe's hand, where a diamond ring sat. Lissa squealed and hugged Chloe.

"Well, since Lissa gave away our first bit of news, I'll tell you the bigger news," Chloe said. "We're going to have a baby," she announced. Lissa, Viktoria, and I squealed before hugging her. Suddenly, Lissa looked nervous. She gripped Christian's hand for comfort. I immediately noticed her nervousness and peered at her in suspicion.

"Congratulations Chloe and Adrian," she said, trying to conceal her own nervousness. "Christian and I have news too." I looked at her closer. Her dress was protruding slightly around her stomach area. My eyes widened.

"You're having a baby," I announced. She nodded, a small smile gracing her lips. I leapt up from my chair and hugged her across the table. Chloe, Viktoria, Lissa, and I sat there at the table, talking about baby things.

"You know, I think I still have Lily's baby things," I said to Chloe. "I can get them for you if you want them. I think Lissa still has Bella's things, but you need something for that little one," I told her. She smiled at me, and her whole face lit up in radiance.

"You would do that Rose?" she asked incredulously. "You hardly know me," she pointed out.

"Well, I like you already. I know you'll be good for Adrian." I changed the subject. "So, do you know the baby's gender yet? Can Adrian see the aura?" she shook her head.

"No, it's way too early for even him too see gender. I think it's a girl though. I just have this feeling." I nodded in understanding. We talked for a little longer before Viktoria brought up names.

"Have you decided on names yet?" she asked.

"Yes, we're thinking Jason Matthias for a boy and Sophia Zoe for a girl," Chloe said. We praised their choice of a name. Then, there was a knock on the door. Christian got up to answer it. Once he saw who was at the door, he began asking questions about how the guest's trip was. When I heard the answer, I turned to face the door, a happy grin plastered on my face.

"Hola mi amor*," said the man in the doorway, looking at me. I rose from the table to walk over to him. He had dirty blonde hair and twinkling blue eyes. His normally pale skin had a light tan, and he was still his usual 5'10".

"Hola* Tristan," I greeted my boyfriend of 13 months, Tristan Dominguez. He grinned at me before kissing my cheek. Lily was finally alerted of his presence, and she bounced out of her seat and into his legs.

"Daddy! You're home!" she squealed, suctioning herself to his legs. He laughed good-naturedly and picked her up. She began chattering to him about how much she missed him and what she did while he was in Spain. When she began her infamous switch to Russian, he covered her mouth.

"I only speak English and Spanish, mi pequeña*," he told her. She giggled a bit.

"Lo siento,* Daddy," she apologized. Besides that little mess-up, she gave him a play-by-play of her whole week. I was impressed that he sat there with her, listening intently the whole time. I smiled at them interacting. He really was such a good father to her. When he came into our lives almost two years ago, he was a blessing. He helped me with everything, even though he had no ties to either of us. Lily's second word after "mama" was "dada".

"Ok, time to go," I announced when I noticed Lily's head drooping onto Tristan. They agreed, and we left for my apartment. Tristan had semi-moved in to the spare room. He kept his apartment for when I needed to do things at home so that Lily had a place to go with him. We put her to bed when we got home. We parted in the hallway to go to our separate rooms and, consequently, dreamland.

***hello my love**

***hello**

***my little one**

***I'm sorry**

**Lily called Tristan "daddy" because she sees him as such. She knows her real dad is Russian/Romanian so she wants to call him "papa" when she meets him. She also knows VERY little Spanish, just enough to understand basic terms of affection for a daughter, hello, good bye, and I'm sorry. Let's try for 90 reviews this chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8

**To clear some things up: the younger you are, the easier it is to learn a language. If you are introduced to a language at an early age and regularly hear people speak it, you pick it up quickly. Because of this, Lily was able to learn Russian and Romanian along with English. The little Spanish she knows is from hearing Tristan speaking it. I hope that helps you guys! **

**Also, I have some "housekeeping" to do. IF YOU ARE USING CURSE WORDS IN REVIEWS, DON'T! I don't know the age audience for my readers, so I'd prefer no inappropriate words in reviews please**!

**Disclaimer: I don't own VA! (Sorry for the long AN…)**

Two months had passed, and life was returning to normal again. Tristan was back, so Lily always had someone to play with. Due to his status as a wealthy Moroi, he doesn't have to work. His trust fund supports him right now. He's been trying his hand at writing though, hoping to get his book published by the end of the year. Lily's fourth birthday had come and gone. She's very proud of her new 'big girl' status.

It was March 19, Ryan and Bella's fourth birthday. Lily, Tristan, and I were all going over to Lissa and Christian's for the birthday party. I put on a pair of dark wash skinny jeans and a white halter-top. I put my hair in a loose side ponytail, letting to loose waves lay on my right shoulder. My white three-inch spike heeled sandals were the final touch to my ensemble. Tristan was wearing a white collared shirt and black dress pants along with black dress shoes. Lily had a red t-shirt and plain jeans on. She was wearing red gladiator sandals, and her hair was down, being held back by a thick red headband.

I grabbed my rather large white purse and slung it over my shoulder as I picked up Lily. Tristan picked up the gifts and held the door for us. The three of us walked down to Lissa and Christian's house. Lily knocked on the door, and Lissa answered it.

"Rose!" she cried, hugging Lily and me first. She smiled at the three of us and let us in. Tristan placed the two boxes wrapped in pastel pink paper on the table with the other pink and purple presents. He placed the other two, wrapped in baby blue, on the table with the blue and green presents. Just then, Bella and Ryan came barreling in, launching themselves at Tristan and my legs. I laughed, put Lily down, and hugged them both.

The party continued with Lissa, Christian, Adrian, Chloe, Tristan, and myself talking while the kids played. After about an hour, Bella and Ryan were demanding their presents. Lissa decided to indulge them. We sat on the couches and beanbag chairs in the living room while Ryan and Bella sat with their present on the floor. Lily was perched on Tristan's lap. Bella opened her first present. It was from Tristan, Lily, and I. I had written 'Rosabella' in calligraphy on the tag.

"Thank you Aunty Rose, Uncle Tristan, and Lily!" Bella exclaimed, looking at her present. We had gotten her Disney Princess, Tinkerbell, and Anastasia coloring books along with a 48 pack of crayons. She opened the second present from us and thanked us again. We had gotten her several children's books as bedtime stories, including: Anastasia, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and other princess stories. Ryan opened his present from us.

"Thanks!" he exclaimed. We had gotten him the same things as Bella but in a more boy-friendly style. His coloring books featured Superheroes, Peter Pan, and Disney Villains. His bedtime stories included: Toy Story, Peter Pan, Spiderman, and other boy bedtime stories. Both twins got beginning readers from Adrian and Chloe. They were simple books designed for beginning readers to help them learn sounds. They also both got Disney play sets for their various interests. They also got accessories (Peter Pan clothes in Ryan's case, princess and fairy dresses in Bella's).

"Here, open the ones from Mommy and Daddy next," Lissa said, handing them their respective presents. Just as they were about to tear into the paper, the doorbell rang. Christian grumbled under his breath about people interrupting the party as he rose to answer the door.

He pulled the door open to reveal Tasha and Dimitri. I immediately tensed up next to Tristan. Noticing my discomfort, he wrapped an arm around my waist. I relaxed into his side as Lily crawled into my lap to offer me additional comfort. Dimitri's sharp eyes zeroed in on Tristan's arm around my waist.

"We came to give Rosabella and Ryan their birthday presents," Tasha said to Christian. He nodded and stepped aside. Tasha handed a pink and purpled swirled package to Bella. I saw Lily wrinkle her nose in distaste at the colors; her favorite color was red. Tasha handed a blue and green swirled package to Ryan. They both opened their presents simultaneously.

"Thank you Great Aunt Tasha," they responded together. Bella had gotten a baby doll with several outfits. Ryan had gotten a Thomas the Tank Engine play set. They almost immediately moved on to the presents from their parents.

"Oooh! Thank you Mommy and Daddy!" Bella squealed, racing over to hug them. They had given her a bunch of dress up clothes.

"Thanks Mommy, Daddy!" Ryan exclaimed. He had gotten a huge container, filled to the brim with legos. The party pretty much broke up then.

Lily and Bella went to Bella's room to play dress up, and Ryan had engaged Christian in the construction of a Lego house. Adrian and Chloe left, claiming they had a doctor's appointment for the baby. Lissa went to the kitchen to make dinner, leaving Tristan and I with Tasha and Dimitri. I had tensed up, and Tristan was murmuring Spanish nonsense in my ear. I noticed Dimitri eyeing me, and immediately shot him my signature death glare. Before the glaring contest could pick up, Lily burst into the room.

"Mama, look at me!" She was wearing one of Bella's new Anastasia dresses. It was the dress Anastasia had worn when she met her grandmamma. I smiled at her.

"Will you sing for us Princess Lily?" I asked, bowing respectfully to her. A quick peek to my left confirmed that Tristan was bowing as well. Lily giggled.

"Of course. I'll sing Once Upon a December" Lily announced. Shortly thereafter, she began to sing softly.

"Dancing bears

Painted wings

Things I almost remember,

And a song someone sings

Once upon a December

Someone holds me safe and warm,

Horses prance through a silver storm,

Figures dancing gracefully,

Across my memory,

Someone holds me safe and warm,

Horses prance through a silver storm,

Figures dancing gracefully,

Across my memory,

Far away, long ago

Things I yearn to remember

And a song someone sings

Once upon a December

And a song someone sings

Once upon a December"

Once she finished, we all clapped profusely. "Lovely! Good job Lily!" I praised her. She looked expectantly at Tristan.

"Perfect as usual princess," He told her. She beamed brightly and launched herself at him.

"Thank you Daddy!" she trilled. I noticed Dimitri's eyebrows shoot into his hairline. He looked at me.

"May I speak with you, Rose?" he asked politely. Oh, crap.

**Please vote for the poll on my profile! I need your opinions on this before the next chapter or chapter 10! By the way, if you leave an anonymous review, I've decided to post the answer on my profile, not in the story! I have the replies up now! Let me know if this is helpful or a good idea. Let's try for 100-105 reviews this chapter? **


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry for the shortness of this one! I don't own VA!**

I reluctantly rose from my seat and followed Dimitri into the hall outside the apartment. Once we were out of everyone's view, he jerked me further down the hall.

"What the heck Rose? Why won't you talk to me?" He was practically shouting at this point. I ripped my arm from his grip.

"Leave me alone, Belikov," I snapped. "You don't know anything." Truthfully, I was fighting the overwhelming urge to break down and tell him the truth. I only felt that way for about two seconds before I regained control of my emotions.

"You're hiding something big from me," he told me, carefully scanning my eyes. I looked away from him, trying to force my tears back. No, I couldn't afford to break down and confess to him.

"You don't know anything," I repeated with a traitorous hitch in my words. He knew that I was practically crying now.

"Please tell me Rose; I'll understand," he promised. I shook my head vigorously and flinched away from his reaching hand.

"No you won't," I whispered as the first tear finally carved its path down my cheek. "You never will." Just then, Tristan and Lily burst out of Lissa's apartment, making a beeline for me. When I shot them a look of confusion, Tristan explained.

"The bond." Immediately, I understood. After Lily was born, Lissa and I had discovered that our bond had been opened so that it was two-way. Lily turned on Dimitri, and I was shocked and a little frightened of the look on her face. An angry scowl marred her beautifully angelic face. She stalked over to him.

"You made my mama cry," she accused him. Next she called him a name in Russian. I wondered who taught her such a horrendous word. Dimitri appeared shocked at her vocabulary as well. She kicked him square in the kneecap to bring him close to her height. Just as she had planned, he crashed to his knees. She punched him in the stomach, causing him to lose his breath.

"Liliya, ¡detente! *" Tristan cried. He reached over and pulled her off of him. She had progressed to punching his chest, stomach, and face after he fell backwards. At Tristan's words, I moved into the line of fire. Carefully dodging the flying kicks and punches, I managed to wrap my arms around her waist and pull her off of him.

"Lily, you're scaring me," I whispered to her. She immediately stopped struggling, dropping limply from my arms to her feet. She turned to face me.

"Mama, are you okay?" she asked, and I could see the worry clearly spelled out on her face. I nodded.

"Yes Bug; I'm just fine." I answered her. "Why don't you go with Daddy back to Auntie Lissa's?" I suggested. "I have to talk to Dimitri." She agreed, and Tristan took her hand, leading her back down the hall. Once even Tristan was out of sight, I turned toward Dimitri.

"I haven't told you the whole truth," I began. "Firstly, Tristan isn't Lily's real dad. Secondly, you should know who he is."

"Do I know him?" Dimitri asked. I nodded and took a deep breath. I squared my shoulders and looked him right in the eye.

"You're her father," I said. His jaw dropped. He was shocked for all of two seconds until the anger took over.

"How could you Rose?" he shouted at me. I did nothing, taking the verbal beating I knew I deserved. "How could you keep me from my daughter for four years?" he asked. Fortunately, he decided not to punch me in the face. Instead, he walked right past me and down the hall. Great. Now I'm going to get the silent treatment. Well, this sucks.

"Rose?" I was saved from more brooding by my mom walking down the hall, a bundle of spring green blankets cradled in her arms. I immediately smiled and reached out for the baby.

"Hey little one," I cooed at her. "How's my little Audrea?" I asked her. She just gurgled at me and waved her little fists in the air. I laughed. Her vibrant red curls were rather unruly today, falling haphazardly on her forehead. I looked up at my mom. She looked awful. Her normally vibrant and bouncy curls were hanging dull and limp around her face. She had dark circles under her eyes, displaying her obvious lack of sleep. I gave a small laugh.

"Did you forget how hard it is to take care of a baby?" I teased. She groaned.

"I swear, she's almost the polar opposite of you. She eats almost nothing and I can hardly get her to sleep." I looked worriedly down at the baby.

"Have you and Dad taken her to the pediatrician yet? If she's not eating, she could have a serious problem. Are you feeding her or does she take a bottle?" I asked, looking at my two-month-old sister. Even thought the thought of my parents together was entirely gross, I decided that I was happy that they were finally happy.

"She's on a bottle now; the pediatrician said there was something wrong with me," Mom said. I nodded.

"Do you want me to take her tonight?" I asked. Mom nodded gratefully, handing me an overnight bag.

"I was hoping you would." That meant that Audrea was cranky. Well, at least I won't be bored today.

***Stop!**

**Well, I thought I'd finish this for you guys! I NEED VOTES FOR MY POLL! I've only had ten people vote! I really need your opinions on this! Let's try for 120 reviews?**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry for the wait guys! I know this chapter is short and doesn't have much excitement, but I've completely planned out the rest of the story! Next chapter should be the big drama/turning point chapter!**

** I don't own VA!**

She was screaming again. For the fifth time in less than two hours, I rose from my bed and crossed the room to the crib that was sitting there. I reached into the crib and lifted Audrea out. I rocked her gently, trying to calm her down. She only screamed one more before whimpering. She put her miniscule hand on my chest, and I immediately knew what the problem was.

"Come on Drea," I cooed as I walked to the kitchen. I pulled a bottle out of the fridge and put it in the microwave. After it was heated, I tested it on my wrist. Finding it the perfect temperature, I guided it into her mouth. Once she was fed, she was happier, but not by much. I still couldn't get her to settle down. Feeling terrible for waking him up, I immediately went to Tristan's room. Seeing him sleep so angelically broke my heart a bit, for I was about to wake him up. I shook his shoulder gently.

"Tristan, get up," I murmured quietly. He woke up and looked at me. "Can you watch Lily? I'm going to take Audrea to the hospital." He nodded. I put on a robe and shoes before grabbing Audrea's bag and going to the hospital.

"Name?" the receptionist asked.

"The baby's?" The receptionist nodded. "Her name is Audrea Camryn Hathaway-Mazur." Her head snapped up at 'Mazur.'

"Your relation?"

"Sister,"

"Sorry, only a parent or guardian can check in a patient under the age of eighteen." I shot her my signature glare.

"If you want to go wake up Janine Hathaway or Abe Mazur in the middle of the night, be my guest." With that thought, she led me to an exam room. The nurse walked in.

"Hello, my name is Zena Kenley. Can I ask what seems to be the problem?" she asked sweetly. I gave her a smile.

"My sister hasn't been sleeping. My mom also told me that she hasn't been eating well either. She woke up screaming earlier. She was hungry, so I fed her. She calmed down slightly but not much."

"Well, we can keep her overnight for observation, but I'm afraid Dr. Hakim isn't available right now to give her an exam." Zena shot me an apologetic look, referring to the resident pediatrician and OB/GYN.

"Why not?" I demanded.

"She's currently in delivery with Mrs. Castile," Zena explained. I conceded to overnight observation. When Zena had taken away Audrea, I decided to call my mom. She picked up on the first ring.

"Mom, Drea's in the hospital," I said bluntly. She gasped.

"What happened to her?" she asked frantically. I heard her waking up my father in the background.

"She woke me up about five times tonight screaming. When I fed her, she didn't stop." I heard a strangled sob.

"Oh, my baby," she murmured. "Is Lara giving her a check-up?" she asked, referring to Dr. Hakim.

"No, she's in delivery with Mia. They're keeping her overnight to figure out the problem."

"Alright, we'll be right over to the hospital," she said before hanging up. Deciding there was nothing more I could do, I went to the waiting room. After sitting there for less than ten minutes, Eddie came running out of the back area. He shot me a funny look.

"What are you doing here Rose?" he asked.

"Waiting for Mom and Abe to get here so we can see Audrea." His face immediately switched to concerned.

"Is she ok?"

"We don't know yet. By the way, how's Mia?" I asked. I had just noticed his haggard and harassed appearance. His hand also looked like it had some wicked bruising. Despite looking thoroughly beaten up, he gave a prideful beam.

"She's the tired but proud mother of twin baby girls," he announced. I immediately got up and gave him a hug.

"So what are their names?" I demanded, putting my hands on my hips. His smile grew impossibly wider.

"Maysen Reilly Castile and Ashton Rebecca Castile," he informed me with a slightly sad smile. My eyes watered a bit. They had named their daughters after Mason and Mia's mother, Rebecca.

"Who do they look like?" I asked, trying not to think about Spokane.

"I think they look like Mia; she thinks they look like me." We chatted a bit longer before he led me back to meet his daughters. When I looked into the little nursery, I immediately knew which babies were the Castile twins, never mind that they were the only babies there. One girl had Eddie's sandy blonde hair while the other Mia's blonde.

"They're beautiful," I praised him. He smiled some more. We talked for a little while longer about anything and everything until my mother ran into the hall, my father hot on her heels.

"Where's my baby?" she demanded as soon as she stopped in front of me. The nurse came around the corner holding Audrea.

"She's fine Guardian Hathaway," the nurse assured her. She sighed in relief before reaching out to take her. Finally, the night's drama was over.

**Again, I'm sorry it's so short! Let's try for 150 reviews? I might be able to get chapter 11 up by the weekend (note "MIGHT"). **


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry for the shortness. I don't own VA!**

It had been 7 months, and life had returned to normal. Dimitri had continued to give me the silent treatment, and I took it in stride, knowing I fully deserve it.

Right now, Tristan, Lily, and I were sitting with Bella and Ryan in the waiting room of the maternity ward in the Court's hospital. After several hours of waiting, both Christian and Adrian emerged from their respective delivery rooms.

"It's a girl!"  
"It's a boy!" they shouted together. Christian came over to Bella and Ryan.

"Do you want to meet your little sister?" he asked them. They agreed, and he took them back to see Lissa. Just then, an ear-piercing scream came from the delivery room Adrian had exited. He immediately rushed back through the swinging door. Viktoria emerged from Lissa's room with an ashen face. Due to her guardian trainee status, I had given her the job of guarding Lissa's room during the birth.

"Sweetie, childbirth isn't fairies and rainbows," I said as she sunk into a chair next to me. "You should give your mama a big thank-you next time you see her," I suggested. She nodded absently, no doubt still traumatized by the events she had witnessed.

"Viktoria?" I heard a voice that I would know anywhere. I looked up from comforting her to see Dimitri. She looked up.

"Dima?" she asked. Before waiting for his answer, she had jumped up and was squeezing him in a hug.

"You know him Vikki?" I asked, rising with Lily in my arms. She nodded and faced me while keeping an arm around him.

"He's my big brother," she informed me. I shot her a look.

"Why'd you lie about your name?" I demanded with my free hand firmly planted on my hip. She looked guiltily at the ground, knowing that I was questioning her as her superior now.

"I wanted my own reputation," she told me truthfully. I softened at that. I know what it feels like to live in someone else's shadow.

"I understand," I told her before facing Dimitri. "What brings you here?" I asked him.

"Tasha wanted me to come with her and Nicholas to her doctor's appointment," he told me. Nicholas Rasmussen is Tasha's boyfriend. "Actually Rose, I was wondering if we could talk privately." I nodded, handing Lily to Tristan and following him to the hallway.

"I'm sorry for keeping her from you," I apologized once we were out of earshot. "I was young and scared, so scared. I didn't know what to do." I could feel myself begin to shake with sobs and hysteria. He immediately reached out to lay a comforting hand on my arm. I pulled away from him as the tears began to fall, the shaking only increasing.

"Roza, it's okay. I forgive you. Everyone makes mistakes," he said in a soothing voice. I kept shaking, and the tears were leaving my eyes in torrents. Soon, I was hyperventilating. I couldn't seem to get enough air into my lungs. Dimitri looked terrified now.

"I'm…sorry…" I gasped out. He had grabbed my arms in a vice-like grip, trying to control my shaking.

"Breathe, Roza," he instructed. I tried to listen to the soothing sound of his voice, but it was becoming increasingly hard. The edges of my vision began to turn black and fuzzy. I got lightheaded and begin to sway dangerously. The last thing I registered was Dimitri catching me before the world went dark.

~~~~~BREAK~~~~~

I woke to an annoying beeping sound. I tried to get up, only to be pulled down by an IV tubs stuck in my arm. Grimacing at the hated tube, I looked at my surroundings. I was in a hospital room.

"Rose, I was so worried!" Lissa was standing in the doorway. She ran over and hugged me. I shot her a look.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" She immediately looked guilty. "Lissa, don't worry about me. You have to take care of yourself." I grasped the IV needle and looked away from it before yanking it out of my arm. I staunched the bleeding in my arm and covered it with a band-aid. Striding out of the room, I searched the halls for Lily. I spotted her standing next to Tristan and a pretty brunette girl. Picking Lily up, I turned to Tristan.

"Where's Dimitri?" He stopped talking to the mysterious girl in rapid Spanish to face me. He shrugged. "Well, Lily and I need to talk to him." I took Lily to Dimitri's personal room. She knocked on the door for me.

"Yes?" he asked as he opened the door. Seeing who exactly was at his door, he stepped aside and let us in.

"Lily?" I asked, facing her.

"Yes Mama?" She looked so innocent. I took a deep breath to steady myself.

"Your Papa came back," I told her. Her face lit up like it was Christmas morning.

"Can I meet him?" she asked with excitement. Then she got an idea, and her face took on a fearful expression. "What if he doesn't like me?" she whispered. The whisper was meant for me, but Dimitri heard it as well. He looked at her.

"Don't worry Liliya," he told her with a smile. "He loves you already."

**Well, I managed to finish this for the weekend! Let's see if we can get 170-180 reviews?**


	12. Chapter 12

**Just to let you know, I changed my mind. Viktoria is the only one who calls Dimitri "Dima." Every one else call him "Dimka." **

** Disclaimer: I don't own VA!**

Lily gave Dimitri a confused look. I could tell she was puzzling out his statement.

"What do you mean he loves me Guardian Belikov?" she asked with her hands on her hips. He shot her a fatherly smile.

"I'm your Papa, Lily," She immediately looked to me. I nodded, telling her that it was true. Her eyes lit up right before she launched herself at him. They chattered in Russian for about twenty minutes while I watched with pride. My phone rang, effectively cutting off the conversation.

"Rosemarie?" I didn't recognize the voice. It was a soft and female.

"Yes?" I answered uncertainly. "May I ask who this is?"

"I'm so sorry! My name is Olena Belikova." I was shocked for all of two seconds.

"Hello Ms. Belikova," I greeted her cheerfully. Dimitri's ears perked up and he snatched the phone from me.

"Mama?" He talked to her for several minutes in Russian. Then he hung up and dialed another number, having another long conversation in Russian. At one point, he was almost yelling and gesturing wildly. When he finally handed me back my phone, I shot him a questioning look.

"What was that about?" He grinned, and I was immediately suspicious.

"We're going to Russia."

~~~~~BREAK~~~~~

After several flights, we had finally made it to Omsk. When Lissa had heard that Dimitri was taking Lily and I to Russia, she immediately paid for our tickets and ones for her, Christian, Ryan, Bella, Anyalyn, Viktoria, and Tristan.

When we exited the plane, I was carrying Lily in my arms, clutching her to me tightly. There were a _lot_ of people in the airport, and I wanted to make sure she wouldn't get lost. Unfortunately, she makes it her life's mission to foil almost every one of my plans. She got excited when she spotted an advertisement or something and managed to wriggle her way out of my arms. Before I could catch her, she had run off and disappeared into the crowd.

"Lily!" I yelled, looking for her in every direction. With each cry of her name, I became more and more hysterical. Tristan was comforting me while the adults who spoke Russian were asking people if they had seen her. With each minute that passed that I didn't have her, my mind thought up a terrible scenario. What if she had been kidnapped?

"Mama!" I heard her shout. My head snapped around to the direction of her voice. A man with bronze hair and brown eyes was carrying her back to us. I jumped from my seat and dashed to her, my tears blurring my vision. When I finally had my arms around her, I kept mumbling my thanks over and over again to her savior.

"Kolya?" I heard Viktoria ask. In my panic, everyone had returned apparently. The man looked at her with scrutiny.

"Viktoria?" he asked. When she nodded excitedly, they hugged and chatted in rapid Russian. I smiled in happiness at everyone, glad to have Lily back and safe with me. After twenty more minutes, we had gotten our bags, and our group had "adopted" Viktoria's friend Nikolai. He had been the one to find Lily. We were all in taxis on our way to the train station. The train took us to Novosibirsk. When we got there, several sleek, black SUVs were waiting, along with several guardians. When I looked to Lissa for explanation, she just shrugged at me.

"Mr. Mazur sent us to escort you to Baia, Guardian Hathaway," one of the guardians said as he stepped forward. I rolled my eyes. Of course Abe sent someone to escort us. He wouldn't want anything less for his oldest daughter. I smiled politely at the guardians and opened the door to the van. One van had three children's car seats and a baby car seat. I hoisted Lily into the seat on the far right, buckling her in. Lissa got Anya situated while Tristan and Christian strapped Ryan and Bella in.

When we all made it to Baia, the guardians stopped in front of a beautiful two-story house. Dimitri and Viktoria jumped out of their van like children. I stayed behind to help the kids from the cars. Tristan, Lily, and I stood in our own little huddle while Lissa, Christian, and their kids did the same. Dimitri, Viktoria, and Nikolai appeared to be the only comfortable ones.

"Dimitri!" I heard from the doorway. I turned to see a woman who looked very much like Viktoria, although she was much older.

"Mama!" he said as they embraced. After Olena, Dimitri, Viktoria, and Nikolai had a conversation in Russian, Olena turned to Lily and I.

"Are you Rose?" she asked in a thick Russian accent. I nodded, smiling at her motherly appearance. She immediately came over and hugged me, mindful of the half-asleep Lily in my arms. She smiled at her. "Is this your daughter Rose?"

"Yes," I answered. Just then, Lily stirred and rubbed her eyes with her little fists. Dimitri had come over almost as soon as he saw her move. "Go back to sleep Bug," I said softly. She let out a little yawn before reaching out to Dimitri.

"Papa," she said, opening and closing her hands in a gesture of wanting. He smiled and took her gently from my arms. Olena looked on all of this with an increasing smile.

"Come inside," she said, gesturing to the door. "I'm sure you're very tired." Giving her grateful smiles, we filed into the house. Standing in the living room was two women. The older one, Karolina, was holding a small toddler in one hand and holding a teenaged boy's shirt collar with the other. The younger one, Sonya, was holding a 6-month-old baby girl.

"Uncle Dimka!" the boy cried. Escaping his mother's hold, the teenager ran to hug him. I snatched Lily from Dimitri's hold right before Paul plowed into him. I laughed. Well, this should be fun.

**I apologise for the lateness of this! I've had a very bad allergy attack this week and my sister had a cold that she probably gave to me. Please review if you can!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Honestly, I have no reason for this lateness. I was having writer's block and my life has been so insane. Then when I thought I was going to have time this weekend to write, I found out I was going to my aunt's house that has no Internet connection. I put off doing some work so that you guys could have this today!**

** I don't own Vampire Academy. **

Karolina smiled at me before extending her free hand in a handshake. I shifted Lily to my left hip to free my right hand.

"Rose Hathaway," I introduced myself.

"Karolina Belikova," she said as she gripped my hand firmly. "This is Zoya," she said as she nodded to the brunette toddler in her arm. I smiled at Zoya before gesturing to Lily.

"This is Lily," I said as she yawned. "She's probably jetlagged," I explained. Karolina nodded understandingly.

"I can show you to your room," Sonya offered. I gave her a very grateful smile. Slinging my bag and Lily's over my shoulder, I followed her up the stairs to a spare bedroom. I laid Lily on the bed and tucked her in gently.

"…And a song someone sings/Once upon a December," I sang softly, wanting to make sure she was asleep. When I finished, I rose and turned to tiptoe to the door. I took about two steps before I jumped three feet in the air due to surprise. Standing in the doorway was Tristan.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" he asked softly. I nodded and followed him down to his room. He sat on his bed and motioned for me to sit down next to him. I complied.

"What's up?" I asked. He just gave a sad, wistful smile before sitting down next to me. By now, I was getting worried about him. "What's wrong Tristan?" I asked, extreme concern lacing my voice.

"I knew it wouldn't last," he said softly, so softly that one would think he was talking to himself. I shot him a confused look.

"What do you mean? I don't understand Tristan," I said, pleading for him to explain what was going on.

"Rose, I know you like Belikov," he began bluntly. "And I'm pretty sure you love him." I hung my head slightly.

"It's so unfair to you, but I can't do anything about it," I told him truthfully. He hugged me unexpectedly and kissed the top of my head.

"I know," he told me. "I understand, and I'm willing to let you go." I looked up at him and nodded sadly. He gave me one last small smile before getting up and pulling me up too. We shared one last hug before parting ways at his bedroom door.

I barely contained my emotions. I reigned them in long enough to escape into my room. Once I had closed the door to my private sanctuary, the sobs tore from my chest. I laid there for hours in my room, crying over the unfairness. The guilt was crushing me, drowning me.

"Rosemarie Hathaway! Get out here right now!" I heard Lissa yell from the hallway. I shouted something unintelligible back. She responded by picking the lock on my door and barging in anyway.

"Go away Lissa! Let me wallow in peace!" I shouted, adding a few obscenities when she didn't leave, but instead yanked me forcefully out of my bed.

"Get yourself together Rose!" she shouted at me. "Think about Lily will you!" At this, I stopped struggling against her and froze. In my heartbreak and grief, I had totally forgotten Lily. Now my guilt was even heavier.

"You're right," I whispered resignedly. "I'll go," I said. After she left the room, I managed to get dressed and make myself somewhat presentable. Descending the stairs, I saw Lily playing with Dimitri. She and Lissa's twins had roped him into playing Pictionary Jr. Bella was currently drawing furiously as Lily and Dimitri tried to guess what the blob was that she was drawing. I gave a small smile.

"Bug?" I asked tentatively. Her head snapped up, closely followed by Dimitri's.

"Mama!" she shouted, launching herself at me. I smiled before hugging her tightly. "Do you wanna play with us? You can be on Papa and my team!" I gave her a small smile and shook my head.

"I'll just watch Bug, thanks." She shrugged and returned to her game. I watched for a few minutes before my phone rang. I left the room and answered the phone without checking the caller ID.

"Kiz?" I heard my father ask, a hint of desperation in my voice.

"Old man?" I asked with incredulity. I was used to coolness and confidence from him, not insecurity.

"Kiz, Drea is freaking out. She keeps asking for you, and she won't be deterred." As he said this, I heard my mother in the background trying to soothe Audrea. I heard her screaming for 'her Rosie,' even thought she can barely talk. I took a deep breath.

"Why don't you guys bring her to Russia? Then I'll watch her and you can have a break. I'm sure you can find someplace close to stay," I suggested.

"That's a great idea Kiz. I'll call the airport now," he said, and the line went dead. Well, this is about to get a whole lot more fun.

**Sorry for the shortness, I just wanted to give this to you guys! Please review if you can!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Well, I really have no excuse for this. I just couldn't write it. I've been slowly working on it, even thought I lost inspiration. I promised that I wouldn't give up on this story, and I didn't. Despite the delay, here's the conclusion to "A Blast From the Past." Please forgive this lateness. **

** Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns VA.**

After a week, I finally got over my aversion to Tristan and the rest of the house. This process was helped greatly when I saw my mother enter my room holding Drea. She immediately twisted out of Mom's arms and toddled shakily over to me, babbling the whole time. I beamed and snatched her from the floor, hugging her to my chest.

"Roza?" Dimitri called, walking into the room with Lily on his hip.

"Yeah?" I asked while bouncing Drea, causing her to giggle with delight.

"Do you want to do something today?" he asked, setting Lily gently on the ground. I picked Lily up swiftly and nodded. His answering smile was positively radiant. He immediately grabbed my hand and led me out of the house and to the park.

"Papa, I wanna go on the swing!" Lily shouted, tugging on his hand. He gave me an apologetic look before allowing himself to be dragged off. I just smiled at the two of them and sat on a nearby bench with Drea. As I watched Dimitri and Lily interact, my heart warmed. He was so good with her.

"Mama, come play with us!" she shouted merrily from the swing set. I shouted back to her and rose from the bench. After making sure Drea was secure in my arms, I picked up the baby bag and my purse. Lily ran over to me, her face alight with happiness.

"Rosie!" Drea giggled from my arms, reaching for my face. I let out a small sigh and put my face closer to her.

"Mama, come play!" Lily demanded, stomping her foot with impatience. I gave her a look.

"Lily, give me a minute please," I asked, trying to calm the now-fussy Drea. She kept persisting, and I grew increasingly frustrated. Before I could completely lose it, Dimitri stepped in to save me.

"Liliya Marie Hathaway, leave your mother alone right this minute!" Dimitri reprimanded. I gave a small smile. He'd do just fine as a father.

Epilogue-14 years later

"Mama!" a female voice shouted through my house. I rolled my eyes and continued chopping veggies for dinner.

"I'm in the kitchen Lyzzie!" I shouted. Less than two minutes later, my twelve-year-old daughter skidded into the room. Elizybeth was my mother's carbon copy, save for Dimitri's brown eyes.

"Mama, Grandma said that she's coming over tonight with Grandpa and Drea," she informed me while stealing a cookie from the cookie jar.

"Elyzabeth Janine, no snacks before dinner!" I scolded. She pouted at me, returning the cookie to the jar.

"Mama, we're home!" two voices announced from the foyer.

"In the kitchen!" I informed Juliet and Joshua. They ran in, tracking mud all over my floors. My twins, now ten, ran in, identical heads of dark brown hair and perfect hazel eyes staring at me.

"Mama, Aunt Noelle said she and Uncle Tristan and Meghan could come for dinner." Julie said. I nodded to myself, mentally setting up the tables.

"Tetka Viktoria and Uncle Kolya are coming for dinner with Katia and Robert." Josh said. I nodded again, adding another four chairs to my mental seating chart.

"That's the six of us, Lily's boyfriend, Uncle Tristan's three, Tetka Viktoria's four, Auntie Lissa's six, and Grandma's three. Set the table for 23 people please Lyzzie. If that won't work, set a kids' table for thirteen and the adults' table for 10." She did as I asked.

Two hours later, dinner was over. Mom, Lissa, Vikki, and I were washing dishes in the kitchen. The guys were watching the game, and the kids were doing God-knows-what. Thinking back on all those years, I'm so glad that everything bad happened to me because it brought me what I have now.

**Sorry for the bad ending. I have zero inspiration left for this story. If you feel so inclined, please leave me a review. **


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